Windows 8 Metro and Adobe Connect - my thoughts.

I keep getting questions from customers around Microsoft's recent announcement that Windows 8 "Metro" will not support any plug-ins, including Adobe Flash. The concern here is that since Adobe Connect  (primarily) leverages the Flash platform to deliver the meeting experience to participants, does this mean that Connect will not run on Windows 8?

Before I provide my thoughts on the topic, I think it's important to get some context around what Microsoft has actually announced with respect to Windows 8. The best source for this information is probably the official Building Windows 8 blog, but here's a quick summary: Microsoft is going to offer Windows 8 users a choice between the new, app-centric, Windows Phone 7-like Metro interface and the traditional desktop experience we're all familiar with. Users will be able to switch between the two modes as needed, so it's not entirely a one-or-the-other type of choice. I think cnet does a better job of describing this:

With touch-screen capabilities and an overall theme borrowed from Windows Phone 7, the Metro UI has been designed with smartphones and tablets in mind but can run on traditional computers as well. However, for people who want better control over their PCs, Microsoft will also offer the more traditional desktop interface as an alternative. By default, Metro will actually hide and not even load the Windows desktop. But people who prefer the more familiar environment can easily flip a switch to display the desktop, which Sinofsky referred to as "just another app" in Windows 8. (read cnet article here).

Bottom line: Windows 8 users will still be able to get the desktop experience (including support for plug-ins) by 'flipping a switch'.

Ok, so hopefully that provides enough context around Windows 8 Metro. Now, I feel like I should point out one other thing - Windows 8 Metro will not support any plugins, including Java, ActiveX, or even Microsoft Silverlight. Keep in mind that all web conferencing platforms (or at least all the ones I'm aware of) utilize some plugin technology, so the whole Metro issue affects everyone, not just Adobe Connect.

So how will Adobe address this problem? I really don't know, but again, regardless of the vendor, there are (almost) two viable options. HTML5 or a Windows 8 Metro app. I say almost, because despite all the HTML5 hype, the reality is that it isn't far enough along to support a full web conferencing experience, especially when you consider that screen sharing is the number one use-case for web conferencing.. so, in the short term at least, we're back to relying on some sort of plugin to solve the screen sharing problem. At the same time, I do think that you could deliver a participant experience using HTML5, so I'm sure that is an approach that many web conferencing vendors will consider.

The other option is, of course, building out an app specifically for Windows 8 Metro. In the Adobe ecosystem, developers will be able to build W8 Metro apps in Flash (delivered via Adobe AIR), which is how Adobe Connect Mobile is currently delivered to iOS, Android and BlackBerry Tablet OS. This means that in the very least, you'd see an experience similar to Adobe Connect Mobile on W8 Metro devices and desktops. Of course, keep in mind that Windows 8 isn't likely to be released until mid-late 2012, so Adobe (and others) have quite a bit of time to crack this nut.

In the end, I can't say that I'm terribly worried about Adobe Connect and its support for Windows 8. The Adobe Connect team includes a lot of smart people who work very hard to ensure that our customers have the best web conferencing and collaboration experience in the industry - and I'm sure that will hold true for everyone using Windows 8, Metro or otherwise. :)